


Call It Magic

by sydvein



Category: TWICE (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F, squint for jeongmo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-26
Updated: 2020-08-14
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:15:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 17,248
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24387304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sydvein/pseuds/sydvein
Summary: In 2015, The New York Times published an article that claims two individuals can fall in love with just 36 questions.With the help of her two best friends, straight girl Park Jihyo is determined to prove otherwise.They just didn't account for the existence of one Minatozaki Sana.
Relationships: Minatozaki Sana/Park Jisoo | Jihyo
Comments: 72
Kudos: 295





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> unedited. unbeta'ed

Jihyo greets another Monday morning with burning lungs and sore legs. With her still wet dishevelled hair and barely there make up, she runs to catch her 7am Psychology major class. She should've known better when she chose to snooze off her alarm and decided to have "5 minutes more" of sleep. 

Her watch reads 7:34am when she arrives at the school gates, and she still needs to climb three flights of stairs to their room. She started to question her life choices upon reaching only the first floor and she’s already out of breath with all the running that she did. ‘Who in their right mind willfully takes a 7am class on Mondays?’

She opens the door to an empty classroom, devoid of any student except for her two friends. They were momentarily startled by her grand entrance, though it didn't take a few seconds before the two continued to discuss whatever it was that they were talking about from earlier, with Jeongyeon typing away whatever information they needed to take note of, unfazed with what just happened. Jihyo timidly walks closer to them. The apology she prepared on the tip of her tongue when Nayeon interrupted her. "Miss Lee gave us only up till 8am to submit our proposal. We're just finishing up, don't worry."

Jeongyeon gives her a run through to everything that she had missed, and informs her of the final requirement they needed to submit before the semester ends. "Majority of our grade will depend on this project. Nayeon and I have already settled on a _very_ interesting topic, one that will surely give us the highest points." There's confidence in Jeong's voice, and another tone that scarily sounds like mischief.

Nayeon gives her a piece of paper and Jihyo reads the title out loud "36 Questions That Lead to Love." Before Jihyo can even read the content, the older girl immediately swipes it away from her. 

"You'll be our test person - our guinea pig if you prefer to call it that way." Jeongyeon butts in with Nayeon towering over Jihyo, ready to receive the onslaught of violent reactions. The youngest girl froze with what she just heard. "Why me?!"

"Well, for one it's because you're late." Nayeon teases her. Jihyo opens her mouth to protest again, but Jeongyeon immediately cuts her off.

"We'll try to prove that it doesn't always work Hyo, so you'll be perfect for the job." Jeongyeon explains, while Nayeon continues to enjoy the terrified look on Jihyo's face. 

"But why me? Why not Nabongs here?" Jihyo tries to pass the responsibility to Nayeon.

Jeongyeon points at the older girl and scoffs, "she falls in love too easily, it will defeat the purpose." 

Nayeon smacks Jeongyeon's arms, "Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" 

"It means exactly what I just said."

Nayeon calms down, contemplates on what the other girl has said until she eventually accepts the truth.

"Well, why not you?" Jihyo points at Jeongyeon, not giving up until the end. 

Nayeon snickers, "Well, she has a _Momo_." 

Jihyo just nods, understanding what Nayeon meant without further explanation, leaving Jeongyeon a blushing mess.

"So you're chickening out Miss Park Jihyo? Scared we'll discover how much of a romantic you really are?" After a few minutes of composing herself, Jeongyeon proudly says her comeback, and challenges Jihyo.

"I-im not!" The two older girls stare at Jihyo, unblinking.

'Bingo.' Jeongyeon smiles to herself. Expect Jihyo to always prove there's nothing she cannot do. 

"So you accept?" Jeongyeon asks, already knows the answer to this, but she needs a concrete answer. Jihyo nods, tries her best to look like she's not that opposed to the idea, a complete turnaround from the Jihyo five minutes ago. 

"Great! So it's settled then." Nayeon pats their maknae's back. "We'll plan everything so that you won't have any problems. Just trust us, yeah?"

Jeongyeon gives her a wicked smile. "And if anything doesn't go according to plan..

  
  


..we'll at least find you someone cute."

\--

Having grown up in a broken family, Jihyo grew up to be a cynic - never one to believe in true love. She still tried to learn about it though. She had spent most of her adolescent life watching movies about it, constantly listening to songs that talk about love, reading romance novel books narrating the story of two people falling in love, but not once did she hoped to have her turn next. 

In her mind it goes a little something like this. 

_First_

You'll meet a person

_Second_

You'll both fall in love and be happy

_Third_

You'll eventually fall out of love in the end and everything gets ugly

She never believed what fiction has told her, not when she experienced the true horrid face of love, not when she endured years of her parents arguing over the smallest of things, shouting at each other not minding that their three young daughters might hear. She's seen it, her parents still coming home everyday but sleeping in separate rooms, staying together despite wanting to get rid of each other everyday of their lives. She got tired just seeing them, how much more her parents? She can't even imagine the torture of having to see and live with someone you resent everyday. 

'We don't want to let our girls grow up without a complete family.' they reasoned. That's not love, that's just an excuse.

Jihyo's not a cynic, that's what she thinks. She's just realistic.

That is why she's doing this stupid experiment. It's not out of her curiosity. “It's for science!” is what she tells herself.

Although, deep down she knows she just wants to prove that true love is really non-existent.

\--

It took three days for Jeongyeon and Nayeon to find the perfect participant. All the while they're also handling the set-up of the location for the activity, preparing the set of questions, and making sure that everything is perfect.

Jihyo took this time to get herself ready, conditioning her mind that all the things that will happen had nothing to do with her personally, she's just a random student who’s desperate to ace her class. 

\--

Then the dreaded day came quickly. 

\--

The second she steps inside the studio, Nayeon immediately teases her.

"For someone who's _just forced_ to do this, you certainly clean up good."

With her minimal make-up that highlights her big hazel eyes, her meticulously done brown wavy hair cascading over her shoulders, finishing it off with her long flowy dress, if there's just one word that will best describe Jihyo at that moment it would be.. _glorious_. 

Of course she doesn't want to look like a slob, Jihyo wants to say but decides not to mention it. She has no energy to bicker with Nayeon - not this time. 

Jeongyeon steps out of the secluded location where the experiment will take place and takes a second to look at Jihyo. She clearly has some remarks to say about how the girl looks, but she stops herself. She knows how nervous Jihyo must feel right now. So instead of making fun of her friend, she just looks at the younger girl and offers an encouraging smile. "We're ready when you are."

\-- 

Jeongyeon and Nayeon did the set-up inside by covering the whole place in white wallpapers. They placed a small wooden table in the middle of the room, and two comfy looking chairs on the opposite ends for the participants. They've also set-up a camera at the side to record everything that will happen inside as they were adamant on keeping the two alone together in that room. They installed a speaker and a mic so they can still give the instructions once they've locked them up. 

Jihyo was instructed that her partner is already inside waiting for her. Her heart immediately strummed the minute she stepped inside the room. As she sat down on the chair, she noticed that there was a large piece of cloth hanging in front of her, concealing the identity of the person on the other side. 

She was startled when Jeongyeon suddenly spoke through the speakers. 

"You have 36 questions written on the cards that are placed on the table in front of you. This will be simple. Just take turns in reading them out loud, and answer all the questions as truthfully as you can. When the fabric in front of you falls, it's the signal that you can start..

..Oh! And Good luck!"

Jihyo's heart started beating harder, blocking out all the noise around her, and forcing her to focus only on the person, still hidden, in front of her. 

The cloth suddenly drops, and it felt like all the air was sucked out from her lungs, 

because there in front of her..

sits a girl.. 

probably one of the prettiest girls she's seen in her life.

\--

Jihyo just stares at the stranger - jet black hair, light mocha eyes, perfectly shaped pointed nose, and skin that glows even with minimal lighting. God really did take His time creating this individual. She was about to open her mouth to introduce herself when the girl in front of her smiles, leaving her speechless. 

"We don't have to know each other's names, they told me this experiment works better with strangers."

Without any qualms, Jihyo complies with the stranger’s request and simply picks out the first card, starting this stupid experiment. 

**“Given the choice of anyone in the world, whom would you want as a dinner guest?”**

\--

Jihyo gives the stranger a name she personally picked out herself. In her mind she calls her Miss giggles, because everytime an exciting question comes up, the raven haired girl can't help but to cover her face with her hands, suppress her snickers, and elicit probably one of the most adorable noises Jihyo has ever heard. 

The questions were divided into three sets, with each part seemingly becoming more and more personal and intriguing as the experiment progressed.

They went through the first set of the experiment like a walk in the park, with the questions ostensibly being random, and mundane. However, being a Psychology major, Jihyo knows these questions and the whole ordeal is designed to be this way. It will first give you a false idea that these questions are arbitrary when in fact, it simply aims to make you comfortable to open up yourself more. 

**“When did you last sing to yourself? To someone else?”**

“This morning in the shower..” Miss giggles answers “..and just last week to my Nana before I flew in here.”

Jihyo picked up the information immediately. ‘Must be a foreigner' Just like what she initially suspected when she heard a bit of accent coming from the other girl.

“Two days ago when I went to a noraebang, and the same exact day when Nayeon unnie asked me to sing for her.” Jihyo thinks about her two best friends waiting outside. So much for trusting them, huh?

\--

It wasn’t until they reached the second set did the questions become more focused on their ideals about love, affection, and relationship in general. From the first set, not once were these topics tackled. It also becomes a little more challenging to answer as it now requires you to tell something deeply personal about yourself, details that you wouldn’t normally share with someone you’re not close with - let alone someone you just met for the first time.

Miss giggles reads the 21st question. 

**“What roles do love and affection play in your life?”**

“I don’t believe in love.” 

Jihyo answers first. She tells the stranger plainly, feeling a little braver now as she figures she needs to make her statement clear that she’s not really keen to the idea of falling in love with someone she just met - or fall in love at all. “My affections are limited to when you are sick, or if it’s your birthday.”

The pretty girl in front of her just smirks, unperturbed with what Jihyo just said.

“My love language is physical touch. I’ve always been affectionate to everyone close to me, but it gets amplified if it's with the person I love." 

The stranger never breaks eye contact, and it makes the hair on the back of her neck stand up. “If I’m in love with you _,_ you’ll _definitely_ know _\- everyone will know_.”

\--

They decided to take a few minutes break before starting the third set as they knew that the last set of questions will probably be more tricky than the first ones. 

And they were right.

**“Make three true “we” statements. For instance, we are both in this room feeling..”**

The black haired girl reads, and she giggles. It makes Jihyo smile too. What can she say? It’s contagious.

Miss giggles composes herself first before answering the question. 

“We’re both girls.” 

She starts, and really it’s the most obvious and probably the first thing anyone can think of. However, the statement feels a bit more thought provoking than it seems as it acknowledges the fact that what they're doing is taboo and out of the norm - considering they’re doing an experiment that aims to make them fall in love.

“We both enjoy wearing dresses.” The other girl adds, now she's just listing out the most trivial things that she can think of and see. It lets Jihyo’s guards down.

That is why when Miss giggles places her elbows down on the table to cradle her face on her hands and stare directly at Jihyo, it makes her feel tense.

“And I think we're both pretty.”

The words came out so smooth, and Jihyo just hopes she’s not blushing by that undoubtedly underhanded compliment. However, judging from Miss giggles’ smile, Jihyo’s guessing she wasn’t that successful in masking her emotions.

It took her a few seconds to respond, but she figures it would probably be best to not drag out their time so she became determined to finish this as soon as possible.

"I think we're both feeling nervous." The other girl nods, agreeing to what Jihyo just said.

"We both want to finish and just get this over with." Jihyo looks at the stranger's face and studies her emotions, looks for the same acknowledgment that they’re feeling the same thing, but she can't decipher what that look tells her. 

Jihyo starts panicking a little so she just blurts out the only thing coming up in her mind "W-we both have brown eyes."

That's when it all comes together in her mind. These questions don't only make you tell something about yourself, it also forces you to learn something about the other person. It requires you to look at your partner, and state your observations about them. 

She thought she’s already free of those kind of stupid questions when card number 28 came up, and boy was she wrong.

**“Tell your partner what you like about them; be very honest this time, saying things that you might not say to someone you’ve just met.”**

The minute the question was read, a sh”t-eating grin blossoms in Miss giggles’ lips, and this time she's not hiding it anymore. ‘She’s clearly enjoying this’ Jihyo thinks, and she’s not too sure what to feel about it.

It was dead silent, no one attempted to answer the question first, but Jihyo really, really wants this to be done already so she just decided to confess the only thing that has been on her mind since they started. She looks up left to avoid looking at the stranger in front of her. 

“I-i like the sound of your laugh.”

Jihyo bites the inside of her cheeks to stop herself from smiling when she saw Miss giggles’ grin grow wider and wider until she cannot contain it anymore. She heard her squeak and she really can’t deny how everything about the other girl screams adorable. 

The girl in front of her blushes, obviously taken aback with what just happened. She fans herself with her hands, having a hard time recovering from that simple statement.

Jihyo stays quiet the whole time, only observing Miss giggles, waiting for her answer. She hates that she’s anticipating what the other girl has to say, and she can’t even dare try to deny it.

“I like the way you look at me. It’s very curious.. but innocent.”

Jihyo feels her face heat up. She's not sure which part to focus on, the fact that the stranger likes it when she looks at her, or the fact that she's supposed to be embarrassed about it but she still can't take her eyes off the said stranger.

\--

Thankfully, they got to finish the 36 cards with minimal struggle. Jihyo was ready to get out of the room when they both noticed that there's still a single card remaining on the table. She picks it up and reads it. 

" **Stare at each other's eyes for four minutes, without talking."**

'You have got to be kidding me.' Jihyo thinks. She scoffs, doesn't even try to hide her displeasure in what they're about to do. She looks at the girl in front who seems to be unfazed with what the card says. Miss giggles just smiles at her as she tries to find a comfortable position. 

"I can _easily_ do this everyday." 

Before Jihyo can even react, they hear Nayeon speak through the speakers. 

"Timer starts now."

'This is awkward.' is the only thought running through her mind as she tries her best to look at those brown orbs in front of her. She gets it though, how essential this part is. Looking at each other's eyes is one of the most intimate things you can do with someone. Maybe that is where the saying “the eyes are the window to one's soul” came from, because having someone look at you in the eyes will make you feel vulnerable, as if your feelings and deepest thoughts are being probed. And a special case like this is scarier when you think about it, being this open with someone you just met. 

Jihyo's itching to break eye contact and so close to doing so, but she knows she needs to endure it or else the results from this experiment will be invalidated, wasting everybody's time and effort. It just doesn't help that the other girl looks so calm, and here she is - freaking out. 

Possibly a minute has passed, and the stranger decided to change her position. Without taking her eyes off of Jihyo's, she inches closer by putting her face on her hands, and resting her elbows on the table just like what she did earlier, except this time, Jihyo's sure she's a little bit closer. It's getting more challenging every second, and they're not even allowed to talk to somehow lessen the awkwardness. 

After a few more seconds of Jihyo fidgeting, she decided to clear her mind and just enjoy this. ‘F*uck this’. The other girl looks easy on the eyes anyways.

'Now this isn't so hard.' Jihyo thinks as she copies the stranger's posture. Both their faces are now closer to each other, she can even smell a hint of Miss giggles' perfume. It smells sweet, like candy, those caramel ones that her Mom always buys her when she was younger. Her mind commits the scent to memory, though she's not even sure what benefit it will bring her.

She stares at the stranger's eyes with nothing in mind, she doesn't even try to count the time anymore. She just keeps her gaze on those eyes until she feels herself being slowly sucked in.

She can't explain what exactly is happening, but she feels like being hypnotized. All the noise, like the sound of the air-conditioning, or the ticking of the clock from the speakers, slowly lull until she hears nothing. The scene in front of her becomes blurry, except for those two pools of brown that seems to drown her with conflicting emotions she's not familiar with. At that very moment, Jihyo doesn't know why she wants the time to stop, but she does. She just feels herself helplessly falli--

*Beep*

Jihyo instantly closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. She doesn't try to comprehend what just happened, she's just glad it's over. 

When she opens her eyes, Miss giggles is already on her feet. She leaves Jihyo with a sickeningly sweet smile.

"See you around, partner."

  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let's be friends? :)
> 
> @/veinhirai


	2. Chapter 2

As soon as she exits the room, she stomps her way straight to Jeongyeon and punches the older girl's arm. Of course it's not the kind that would hurt, but definitely the kind that would show how frustrated she was. "Really? A girl?!"

Her two older friends just laugh at her, with Jeongyeon sarcastically rubbing her arm that received the unwelcomed blow. 

"What? She's perfect!" Jeongyeon replies with a smirk and feigned ignorance. Nayeon places her hand on Jeongyeon's shoulder signaling her to stop, seeing that their maknae is still obviously upset.

"We tried to find a way to lessen the chance of you falling in love, and figured what better way than to have someone who's basically not your  _ preference _ ." Nayeon explained. 

Jihyo, of course, already got the idea the moment she saw her  _ partner _ . "A little heads up would've been nice." She says with a pout.

"Now where's the fun in that?" Jeongyeon still continues to poke fun at her. Jihyo was about to attack again if not for Nayeon who surprisingly handles the situation like an adult.

"She's also only staying here for a few months, something about a dance program from what I heard. So if ever it does get awkward between you two, at least you just have to endure it for a few while." Nayeon tries to calm her down, and thankfully it does the trick. 

Just when they thought Jeongyeon has already finished with the teasing, she opens her mouth again. "Wait! You're still straight right?" 

Her patience with Jeongyeon is really being tested. "Of course!" Jihyo shouts. She didn't mean to sound defensive, but she's still high from her raging emotions.

Her two older friends just nod, but they can't seem to wipe the smirk off their faces.

If Jihyo's being honest, she really hasn’t given much thought about her sexuality, not when she's not even thinking about dating. It's just that almost all the movies, songs, and books that she had seen and heard before only talks about love between a man and a woman. Naturally, she felt attracted to the opposite sex, oftentimes she even catches herself admiring some random guy's chiseled jaw, or their broad shoulders. Sometimes she even feels giddy when said random guy smells good. There's just something special about men with good hygiene, as there's only a handful of them. She definitely had a few crushes from before, all being guys. 

The moment she agreed to this whole undertaking, she envisioned meeting someone with all the characteristics previously mentioned, instead she's given, well - Miss giggles.

"But at least we got someone cute, just like we promised." Nayeon can't help but to add to the teasing. 

"Straight or not, you did find her cute right?" Jeongyeon asks her, genuinely curious to what Jihyo thinks.

She didn't respond immediately and instead of looking directly at Jeongyeon, she focused her eyes on the small unkempt hair on the top right side of the other girl's head. "N-no."

She didn't mean to stutter, there's just something in her throat, not that anyone's asking.

Her two friends just laugh at her response. Nayeon ruffles her hair playfully as they walk out of the studio. "Nice try, Hyo."

\--

Miss Lee once told them that your dreams consist of the things you think about right before you sleep. 

That night, Jihyo dreams about drowning. In a vast ocean, she gasps for air and tries her best to stay afloat. It's terrifying how the waves continue to wash over her while the gravity stubbornly pulls her down. She fights to stay alive but she's too weak. When she finally surrenders herself, she sees the water turn from its pristine blue color to light pools of brown. She feels the water flow into her body and head straight to her lungs. After a long moment of struggling, she realizes there's no point in fighting so she just let the water infiltrate all the parts inside her body. She expected it to hurt, but surprisingly, it didn't. It seemed like being one with the ocean made her feel more calm. When she felt her body touch the bottom it almost felt like that is where she's supposed to be, and she weirdly felt at peace. 

\--

The three of them meet up for lunch at the cafeteria the next day, like what they have always been doing for God knows how long. They literally grew up together, having lived in the same neighborhood, they met each other when they were still toddlers. The three of them went to the same school, so even their choice of university was carefully picked out with the consideration of still being together. The three of them became inseparable like that. 

When Jihyo arrives, Jeongyeon and Nayeon are already seated on their usual spot with food already prepared on the table. 

She quietly sits down and places her bag on the side. It didn't take long before their banter started.

"You seem to have enjoyed a  _ very good _ sleep." Nayeon sarcastically says. 

Jihyo didn't say a word. Too tired from not having a proper rest. Who can blame her when her dreams consist of her dying, and her feeling okay with it. 

Jeongyeon kicks her feet under the table demanding attention. "Momo and her  _ friend _ will be joining us for lunch." Jihyo's ears perk up at the mention of the word friend. She already had a slight idea who that person might be. "You're okay with that, right?" Jeongyeon asks. Jihyo just nods her head, not minding the immediate rise of tempo of her beating heart. 

\--

She sees Momo enter the cafeteria with, unsurprisingly, Miss giggles in tow. She tries her best not to look at them, afraid that she might seem too eager to see her  _ partner _ . 

When the two girls arrived, the attention instantly went to both Jihyo and Miss giggles. Jeongyeon clears her throat when the tension becomes too thick around the five of them. "Hey Ji, I hope you still remember Sa--"

"Minatozaki Sana." The new girl interrupts and extends her hand for Jihyo to take, the gesture definitely catches Jihyo's attention.

She figures she can't really keep on avoiding everyone's prying eyes so she courageously takes Sana's hand and finally looks at the other girl's face to introduce herself. "Park Jihyo." 

At least now they're not strangers anymore.

And there it was again, the same orbs of brown staring directly at her, and the same adorable giggles from yesterday, only this time there's an addition of warm hands around hers.

'What did I get myself into?'

\--

The whole time they're eating, Jihyo tried her best not to look in Sana's direction. She busied herself with playing with the food in front of her, or casually joining in the conversation whenever Jeongyeon says something dumb. But even with the lack of interest that she had shown Sana, the other girl still seems to be completely focused on her, evident with the way she feels those two eyes burning holes on her face. It made her anxious, the feeling of being studied by another person. It made her fidget and involuntarily touch her hair, either tucking the strands behind her ears or simply straightening them out. 

"Hey Sana, thanks again for agreeing to do that experiment with us." Nayeon offers her bunny smile to the younger girl. Jihyo on the other hand, keeps her gaze on the almost empty plate in front of her. 

"I was promised a pretty girl, and I met one. So the pleasure's all mine." Sana cheekily tells them, her gaze not leaving Jihyo. 

Nayeon and Jeongyeon both chuckle when they see how red Jihyo's face is. The youngest girl, unable to look up and let the other people see her blush. How badly does Jihyo wish for the ground to just open up and swallow her whole. 

"You're not bothered by the experiment?" Jeongyeon inquires. "Like, at all?"

Sana finally takes her eyes off Jihyo, and the younger girl takes this opportunity to look up. Her neck's already aching a bit from keeping her head down the whole time. 

(If she did see a glimpse of Sana's side profile and left her stunned for a moment, no one has to know.)

"I've already done plenty of  _ experimentation _ before Jeong." There's a playful tone in her voice, and a light glint in her eyes. 

None of them makes a comment but they certainly weren't able to hide the smile on their faces from what Sana's bold statement implies.

It made Jihyo smile too, she really can't deny that there's a certain charm about the new girl. 

"We'll be fine, right?" Sana directly asks her, with inquisitive eyes and a gentle smile. Jihyo nods at her lightly, then she's back to staring at her empty plate again.

With their class being on the opposite side of the campus, Momo and Sana had to leave earlier than the rest of them. After Momo has given Jeong a last squeeze, the two Japanese girls get up and walk out of the cafeteria. Jihyo takes a peak at her partner's retreating figure, and it's as if Sana had felt it. Just a few steps before exiting the room, she turns around and successfully gives Jihyo a wink. 

It only took a millisecond for hers and Sana's eyes to connect, but it's effect on Jihyo is still as strong. She suddenly feels like  _ drowning _ .

\--

Jihyo had originally planned on avoiding Sana until the girl leaves and heads back to Japan for good. The experiment didn’t say anything about them needing to hang out or get together after. She was so set on doing just that but the universe doesn’t seem to want the same thing to happen.

Just mere hours after their awkward lunch together, she unexpectedly runs into Sana on her way out of the campus. She was still trying to pretend not to see the other girl, but when Sana called out her name she got no other choice but to acknowledge her. 

She offers Sana a tight lipped smile when she turns around to face the other girl “You’re going home?” The raven haired girl asks her. Jihyo nods in response. She can’t fathom how the other girl always rendered her speechless. 

They naturally start walking slowly out of the gates. “Where do you live by the way?” Sana asks again.

“Just two blocks from the corner of 2nd street.” Jihyo answers. Words finally coming out of her mouth.

There was an unexpected squeal from the other girl. “I live around that corner too!” When Jihyo thinks about it, she did bump into Momo countless times before, sometimes even together with Jeong. She figures Sana must be living together with Momo. It all makes sense. 

She thinks about her two best friends for a while. Though she loves the two very much, she can’t imagine living together with them. Just imagining it gives her an aneurysm. It was a consensual decision between the three of them to live separately, with Nayeon opting to stay in the dorms. Jeongyeon and herself both wanted to have a private room so she chose to find a place outside campus even though the price is a bit steeper, and Jeongyeon, having a car, chose to live a few minutes away from campus with a little bit less pay for a single room. It works perfectly.

Sana clears her throat when she notices Jihyo spacing out for a while, and it brings her back to reality. “I don’t know anyone from here.” Sana started talking, not sure if the girl beside her was even listening. “I got offered a program limited to a few students and didn’t want to waste the opportunity, besides Momo was here that's why I came.” Jihyo hums, making sure that Sana knows she’s listening even though she doesn’t utter a word. They keep walking side by side, with a respectable distance between them

A few more steps, and Sana decided to stop on her tracks. Jihyo didn’t notice it at first, but she eventually did. She suddenly missed the voice of the person talking beside her, and its owner’s mere presence. Jihyo looks back and is welcomed with a sight of Sana smiling widely at her.

“You don’t look at me anymore.” Sana’s voice was a bit louder than usual considering the few meters in between them. Jihyo can’t help but to laugh at the silly girl and her silly tricks. ‘Unbelievable.’

“Would it be too bad if we became friends?” The smile from Sana’s face dwindles as she asks the question. The both of them just stood there for quite a while, with Jihyo contemplating on her life choices, and Sana patiently waiting for her decision.

Jihyo eventually moves and takes a step towards the other girl’s direction until she’s just a foot away from her. 

(What happened to her original plan of avoiding Sana? She doesn’t know either.) 

“No.” 

Sana’s blinding smile returns to her lips.

\--

She "accidentally" bumps into Sana again the next day on her way home, and again the day after next. On the third day, Jihyo’s last class went a little over the time so she was able to get out of it a bit later than usual. 

Even from a distance, she can already recognize Sana’s figure standing near the school gates. She decides to pause for a while to observe what the Japanese is doing. There Sana was, kicking some imaginary litter with the tip of her shoes. With her two hands holding her bag in front of her, her head keeps on going around, as if scanning for something Jihyo doesn’t know yet. Or maybe she does, but too cowardly to admit. ‘Is she waiting for me?’

She doesn’t know where she got the idea, but she decided to sneak around and head towards the gate without the other girl noticing. Jihyo successfully got behind Sana, and with all her strength she shouted. "Boo!"

The Japanese shrieks and it catches the attention of the students who are passing by them. She started hitting Jihyo's shoulder before she could even stop herself. The Korean, on the other hand, just laughs at the startled girl.

"Were you waiting for me?" Jihyo asks plainly, wanting to confirm her suspicion. She keeps her gaze at Sana until the girl eventually blushes.

Without a word, Sana turns around and starts walking home. Jihyo just stood there unmoving, confused with what just happened. It didn't take long before Sana eventually looked back at her. "Let's go home."

\--

The walk home this time is a little bit quieter than the previous times, with Sana still sulking beside Jihyo. She figures that maybe she should make up for being late, startling the other girl and also maybe for teasing her a little. They're friends after all, it's hard not be when they've practically shared intimate details about them with each other that no one else knows. 

Jihyo felt a bit weird about it at first, having known Sana for less than a week but quickly growing comfortable around her. Of course they couldn’t avoid the earlier stage of awkwardness between them, but then they also got over it fairly quickly. She guesses it's got something to do with the experiment that they did, forcing them to speed up the getting to know and be openly vulnerable part. She still however doesn't rule out the idea that maybe Sana's just naturally a person that you can get along well easily. 

She notices that the Japanese still had a pout on her lips, and had remained quiet the whole time. It bothered her. She can't stand it when someone's upset with her. She has always been like this with her friends. Sana’s not special, she tells herself.

"Let's get coffee? My treat." She asks out of the blue. They stop walking and when Sana turns to her, there's already a small smile forming on her face. 

\--

After hanging out in the cafe for a couple of minutes and getting their caffeine fix, the Japanese is back to her original self. They exit the store with a bubbly Sana, and all is right again with the world. 

The Japanese confessed earlier that she was indeed waiting for Jihyo so that they can go home together. Apparently, Momo always comes home late these past few days because she was assigned to choreograph some dance as a requirement for one of their majors. And having just arrived not even two weeks ago, Sana had no other Korean friends other than the trio. She had looked forward to walking together with Jihyo everyday because it's the only human interaction she can have besides Momo.

They're now walking comfortably home with a little bit less space between them than a few days ago when this routine of theirs started. 

Jihyo doesn't know what came up to her when she blurted out. "How did you know you like girls?" 

The sudden question took them both by surprise, but most especially Jihyo as she knows it's not a question you usually ask someone you've met probably less than a week ago. But then again, their friendship has always been unusual to start with. Jihyo assumed that Sana would get offended, but thankfully she didn't.

"Who said I like girls?" Sana answered with a teasing tone. Jihyo wasn't able to respond after knowing she had assumed wrong. 'God, this is embarrassing.'

"I'm kidding." The Japanese finally say. "But I don't like girls  _ only _ , I don't discriminate."

Jihyo still doesn't say a word, afraid that she might say something embarrassing again.

Sana noticed that Jihyo suddenly turned quiet, and like the  _ normal _ girl that she is, she decided to stick her face close to Jihyo, like really close then whispers. "I like pretty things." It certainly made the other girl flustered, but Sana didn't feel guilty about it, not one bit because at least now they're even. 

\--

It was only a couple more blocks until they arrived at Jihyo's place when Sana reached out her hand for Jihyo to take. The Korean just stared at it, confused again to what she's supposed to do with it. 

"Are you that allergic to human contact?" Sana says in jest. 

Not wanting to be pestered anymore, Jihyo hesitantly takes it. 

Sana's hand is warm, and there's a jolt inside Jihyo's body when Sana decides to intertwine their fingers, because simply holding it is not enough for her. 

Whether Jihyo likes the feeling or not, no one has to know.

(She does.)

\--

She looks at the clock hanging on the wall and it reads 2:48am. Good thing she only has one class tomorrow, and it's in the afternoon. She's been in bed for almost 4hours now and sleep still evaded her. She tried everything, God knows how many warm cups of milk she has already consumed, or how many herds of sheep she has already counted in her mind. Nothing worked as she still lied there wide awake. 

Being a Psychology major, Jihyo would like to believe that she should somehow have some control on how her mind works, but unfortunately she doesn't. Desperate as she is right now, she tried to chant a mantra.

_ I am the master of my mind. _

She repeats it a couple more times until her breathing evens out, then she tries to close her eyes.

And there it is, a mental image of light mocha eyes that continues to invade her mind. 

She immediately opens her eyes. She doesn't give up right away though as she repeats the process again. She turns to her side this time, finds a more comfortable position hoping that maybe it will help. 

_ I am the master of my mind. _

She closes her eyes again, and she somehow hears those same giggles that doesn't fail to make her giddy. 

She sighs loudly and decides to put her pillow above her head and tries to block her whole face with it. She figures, maybe this will do the trick.

_ I am the master of my mind. _

As soon as she closes her eyes again, she feels the same tingling sensation on her fingertips, the same one she felt from earlier. 

She finally gives up this time and gets out of bed. She has accepted her fate of not being able to sleep again tonight.

She is not the master of her own mind. Apparently, Miss Minatozaki is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the comments. You don't know how much it motivates me to write.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter too!
> 
> Tell me what you think? :)


	3. Chapter 3

Jihyo and Sana have now found their new normal, with Sana consistently waiting everyday for Jihyo to finish her class so that the two of them can walk home together. The walk home relaxes Jihyo as they simply talk about the things that happened during the time they're not together. Sometimes they also stop by the same coffee shop they went to the first time, order the same drinks from before, and maybe stay for a while when they feel like it.

Everyday, Jihyo now looks forward to each afternoon that she gets to see the other girl who's waiting for her near their school gate. She looks forward to the wide smile that greets her every time they see each other, and the way Sana always patiently holds out her hand for Jihyo to take.

Jihyo looks forward to a warm Sana that always manages to complete her day.

\--

Jihyo learns a lot of new things about the other girl, those trivial ones that you share with a new found friend, which is the complete opposite of the stuff they talked about the first time they met. Jihyo finds it fun, knowing more things about Sana. She genuinely enjoys the company of the other girl. Simply put, being with Sana is easy.

She learns that the Japanese had actually briefly lived in Korea when she was younger because of her father’s job, hence her almost fluent Korean. 

Jihyo learns that she is an only child, which maybe explains how brave she is with her decision of flying to Korea alone, with Momo the only person she knows. At least Momo has her family here, although they live a few hours outside the city, Momo can always visit them whenever she feels like it, unlike Sana who needs to literally cross an ocean before she can be with her family again. Having grown up with no one else besides her parents and grandma, Sana must’ve learned even from a young age that time will come when she’ll have no one else to rely on but herself.

Maybe it’s also the reason why Sana has always been extremely affectionate. Having no other siblings, she might have some suppressed affection that she channels to the close friends around her. She doesn’t reject the other girl's affection simply because it would be too cruel knowing the reason behind the other girl’s actions. She receives Sana’s affections easily because she just wanted to be a good friend to the other girl. It’s easier for Jihyo to believe this reason than accept the fact that maybe she enjoys it too.

Jihyo also discovers how Sana looks very much like a dog, a Shiba Inu to be exact. How did she discover it? Probably from all the unsubtle ogling she does when she thinks Sana’s not looking. Jihyo still feels self conscious most of the time when she stares directly at the Japanese, knowing how the other girl enjoys it. There are times though when Sana does catch her looking, and Jihyo is always grateful for her not mentioning anything about it every time it happens.

“Here we are.” Sana’s voice brings her back from her reverie. Jihyo looks around and sees that they are indeed already in front of her apartment. She was about to let go of Sana’s hand when she felt the grip on her hand become tighter. She looks at the Japanese grinning mischievously at her. She only laughs at Sana's antics. 'What does she want now?' Slowly, Sana raises her arms and opens them for Jihyo. She tilts her head a little bit to the side, and again waits patiently for Jihyo to come to her.

Jihyo just stood there unmoving. Although she has already recently become comfortable with how Sana acts with her, and vice versa, she still has some reservations. It’s not something she is used to, all these physical affection that she’s receiving from the other girl. She simply cannot get rid of her hesitations just because it’s Sana. 

But seeing how forbearing the Japanese is with her, has always been, Jihyo sees no harm in indulging the other girl’s simple request, so she eventually gives in. Thankfully she does so, because how else would she know how pleasant the feeling of being enveloped in a hug would be? She learns that night that Sana’s hands aren’t the only part of her body that’s warm, her whole body is. Jihyo feels cosy, and it feels weird. She doesn’t know how it’s possible for a person to feel like home.

Jihyo didn’t even realize that both her eyes had closed as Sana continued to soothe her back. She can’t really explain it, but she feels safe with how Sana holds her, totally enclosed but not to the point where she feels suffocated. She hears the other girl chuckle softly just before she lets her go. Jihyo keeps her eyes trained on the ground as she walks away from the Japanese, and heads towards her apartment. 

Sana didn’t utter a single word, instead just kept a silly grin on her face as she waited for Jihyo to get inside her apartment. Jihyo takes a peek at her just before she closes the door, and Sana simply waves her hand and mouths “See you tomorrow.”

And just like that, an addition was made to their routine. 

\--

The five of them had decided this time to eat outside, too sick of eating the same thing the cafeteria serves everyday. Unlike the first time they got together, the atmosphere this time is a lot better than before, with Jihyo and Sana becoming more comfortable in each other’s presence, maybe a bit too comfortable even.

Jihyo arrived late, again, an occurrence that has become a habit as of late. She tries to blame it on her professor that dismissed them a little over the time, but really she’s just too distracted these past few days. Sana and Jeongyeon had just finished ordering and are now going back to their table when she arrived. There’s that same look again that Sana gives her whenever they see each other the first time in a day, and it never fails to make Jihyo feel calm. Yes, calm. An extremely different emotion from the first time they met, a feeling she had recently discovered was possible to feel around the Japanese the first night she hugged her.

Sana’s eyes never left hers as she sat quietly beside the Japanese, with her three other friends already settled in front of them. “I already got you your usual.” Sana tells her. Nayeon and Jeongyeon’s eyes travelled quickly to them, which she immediately noticed. She gives them a warning look, and thankfully her two best friends stayed quiet. She takes a sip of her coffee and smiles because Sana did get her order right. She offers a grateful smile at the girl beside her to show how much she appreciates the gesture. 

Sana noticed a bit of coffee spilled on Jihyo's chin, and without thinking she wipes it away with her thumb. It all felt natural that even Jihyo seemed unfazed with it. Her two older friends seem to think otherwise as their mouth suddenly opened upon witnessing what had just happened. Good thing Momo was there to immediately distract Jeongyeon, Jihyo only had to deal with Nayeon who's still staring incredulously at them. Jihyo gives her a look again, but this time Nayeon challenges. Jihyo gives up and sighs. She'll have to deal with it later. 

\--

"You like her." Nayeon tells her after Sana and Momo left. It was a blunt statement, to which Jeongyeon nodded in agreement. 

"Of course I like her, hard not to when we're friends." Jihyo tries to play it cool, blatantly ignoring what she knows Nayeon really means.

Her two friends just stare at her, don't even try to argue at this point. But Nayeon can't help but to smile to herself, clearly wanting to tell some witty remarks but controls herself not to.

Jihyo really thought the silence would help erase the idea in her mind, ironically it only made her thoughts louder. She whines after some time, letting out her frustrations "What do you want me to say?"

Jeongyeon continues to scrape down the remaining crumbs of dessert on her plate "Nothing. We just want to say that it doesn't help that your eyes are too big Hyo. We can see how dilated they were."

There's a blush that crept up to her face, and she knows there's really nothing much she can say. It's hard to deny something that contradicts what your body is subconsciously showing.

Nayeon speaks up, unable to keep her peace "What I'm trying to say, before you try to kill us again with your stare, is that there's nothing wrong if you do like her, _like her_."

She already knows this, but she still continues to listen with her mouth shut. 

"Especially if she looks at you like that." Jeongyeon adds.

The statement caught her attention and it made Jihyo look up to them, confused "Like what?"

Jeongyeon snorts while Nayeon stares back at her, can't believe what she's hearing. 

"For someone who's top of her class, you're really dumb sometimes."

\--

Jihyo decided not to see Sana that afternoon. A single " :( " was all the reply she got, and she tries not to let it bother her. There's just a lot of information she learns that day, things that she thought were not possible to happen, and it's a little too much to handle.

She learns that day that apparently she isn't as _straight_ as she thought she is. But just like what Nayeon told her earlier, she knows that there is nothing wrong with it if she does feel this way. 

One of her professors taught them this before from one of their introductory courses, and it really stuck in her mind. Sexuality is a spectrum, always varying in a continuum. In simpler words, one is not restrained to liking only either a guy or a girl, and what you like at a certain point in time won’t necessarily be the same all throughout your life. You can get attracted to whoever, at whatever point in your life, and that is perfectly normal. 

It's times like this that Jihyo's really thankful she made the right choice in picking her degree. It helps her understand herself better, easier to accept the changes that she's going through because she knows there's nothing wrong with her. 

Another thing she learns that day is that she really might have caught _feelings_ for the Japanese. A crush? Infatuation? She doesn't really know. What she does know is that she wants Sana around her all the time. And if she's being honest, Jihyo finds this idea harder to accept. All her personal beliefs are challenged by none other than herself. The worst part is she doesn't even know what the other girl is feeling.

Her ideas, emotions, feelings, they're all conflicting. 'What if she does like me back?' is one of the questions she's trying her best to avoid. She's clearly still not ready for an answer.

Jihyo sighs loudly. It's a lot to take in. Nothing could have really prepared her for the existence of one Minatozaki Sana. 

The thoughts don't leave her mind, and she feels like her brain's about to explode. She decides to head out of her apartment and do what a normal young adolescent woman does when they're getting stressed out, and that is to cut her hair. 

\--

Jihyo exits her room as soon as the bell rings, doesn’t even mind if her professor still has something to announce. She’s just too excited to see a certain someone. She doesn't even deny that she kind of (extremely) missed her, not having the chance to see the other girl yesterday was a bit too long for Jihyo. 

Sana's face was of pure shock when she saw Jihyo's hair drastically cut short. It made her feel like seeing a whole new person.

Jihyo on the other hand can't help but to get self conscious, hence the uncontrollable touching of her hair. She suddenly got nervous, and it's stupid. 'Since when does Sana's opinion matter? It's not like she needs Sana's approv--'

Her thoughts were cut off when Sana ran her hand through Jihyo's newly done hair. It sends tingles throughout her body.

"I like it." Sana says, continues to play with her short hair, looks at it like she's entranced. "I like everything about you."

"Oh." 

_'Oh.'_

_\--_

It's getting harder and harder by the minute - letting go of Sana. Every time they part ways and share that final hug at the end of the day, Sana's hold on her seems to grow a little bit longer and a little bit tighter. And the little whine that the Japanese lets out simply doesn't help. 

Jihyo doesn't know what she's thinking when she suddenly blurted out "wanna hang inside?"

She almost curses at herself. But Sana looks at her with shining eyes, gives her the widest smile, and nods her head enthusiastically. Jihyo so badly wanted to give her a pat on the head at that moment, but she stops herself with a reminder that the girl in front of her is not a puppy, no matter how close the resemblance is. Her suggestion doesn't seem to be so bad after all. 

\--

So, here they are standing in the center of Jihyo's living room, and she's feeling tense. To any other people, this may look normal, inviting someone over at your place to hang is what normal friends do. Well, not with Jihyo. The only people that have seen the inside of her apartment are Nayeon and Jeongyeon, and that's a given. Not even her family has been inside. For her, inviting someone over felt like opening herself up, the most intimate details about her lies in the four corners of her home. And seeing Sana in the center of it all made her _feel_ things. 

Sana just stood there, admiring all the tiny nooks and crannies of her home. She didn't go ahead and touch all of Jihyo's things until she's given permission. She starts with the picture frames that decorated the room. She runs her eyes on the pictures until she finds one particular photo that stood out. Sana coos at the sight of baby Jihyo that she saw in one of the picture frames, and she cradles it in her hands as she looks at the actual Jihyo in front of her. She immediately places the frame down, afraid that she might steal it away. She then focuses her sight on the few trophies Jihyo took from her parent's house, and Sana's heart bursts with joy, proud of the achievements the Korean has. 

Jihyo observes on the side, admires how careful Sana is with her belongings. And it feels a little bit like the Japanese is afraid too. Of what exactly? They still don't yet. 

\--

It was a Saturday morning when Jihyo was woken up by a knock on her door. She hesitated on opening it at first, as she's expecting no one. However, the gentle knocking continued to no end, and Jihyo doesn't really want to bother her neighbours. She barely got time to rid the sleep off her eyes when she finally opened her door. The sight of Sana with a huge shopping bag greeted her. 

They stood there for a couple of minutes with Jihyo looking confused at the early visitor until Sana held up her arms holding the bag "I thought you wanted pancakes?" 

'Oh right.' Jihyo remembered telling Sana last night that she is craving for some pancakes. She just didn't expect the other girl to show up too early in the morning just because of that. 

But it's Sana - Sana who always got something up her sleeves that always leaves Jihyo pleasantly surprised. She didn’t let a second more pass as she invited the other girl inside.

\--

She still can’t wrap her head around the image of Sana wearing an apron, her apron that she barely uses, and cooking in her kitchen. She offered to help, but the Japanese insisted on her just relaxing on the couch because ‘I wanted to do this for you’ are the exact words Sana told her a few minutes ago.

She doesn’t know how and when they went from strangers, who were randomly partnered up in some stupid experiment, to this. Of course, the experiment really did its magic with getting them close in no time, but in reality, they really have no other reason to be together and get closer like this. She doesn’t know when the walls, that she so hardly put up all these years, had crumble down so easily just to let Sana in. It’s not like Sana had shoved her way into Jihyo’s life. The truth that she can’t deny is that maybe she simply let her.

"What are we doing?"

“I’m making pancakes, and you’re watching me make them.”

Sana spared her a glance while she kept her stare on the other girl. They both know that is not what she’s really asking. She heard Sana turn off the stove and saw her place the pancakes in a plate before heading to where she is. They both sat on the couch facing each other. The Japanese carefully cuts the pancakes, blows on them gently and offers it to her. She hesitated for a while but gave in eventually as she opened her mouth to have a taste of what Sana made. It was delicious, perfectly soft and sweet. She thanks the other girl, and Sana giggles in response, proud of her work and the reaction she got from it.

Sana places the empty plate on the side before she focuses her attention back to Jihyo. The question from earlier still hangs in the air. She pats Jihyo’s head lightly. “What’s going on in that huge brain of yours?”

“Nothing, just ignore it.” Jihyo avoids Sana’s stare that’s making her anxious and attempts to stand up, wanting to move away from the older girl, but the sudden hold on her hand was quicker preventing her from going. 

She was now forced to look at the older girl’s face again, and honestly it’s too early in the morning for Sana’s perfect face to attack her, but it does. She sees her brown eyes and it leaves her speechless - again. She really thought she’s already over that phase, but apparently she isn’t. 

It must’ve taken too long for her to speak up so it was Sana who decided to break the silence and bravely address the big elephant in the room.

“Do you want me to stop?” The soft smile remained on Sana’s lips, but her eyes seemed to have lost a little bit of its sparkle. 

Jihyo so badly wants to say no, but it looks like she had lost all control over her own body as she remained motionless. Sana searches for the answer in her eyes instead due to the lack of reaction. The Japanese inches closer, keeping her gaze trained on Jihyo’s eyes, stubbornly trying to get a response. 

It all happened so slowly, the minuscule second that Sana's eyes travelled to her lips came first, followed by the sweet, heavenly scent of the other girl that wafted through the air and captivated her, then a hand comes up to gently cradle her face, and lastly came the voice that haunts her even in her dreams. "Please tell me to stop." 

She doesn't. She closes her eyes instead and lets all her senses be taken over by one Minatozaki Sana. 

Now, all she needs is a taste.

\--

There remained a hairline that Sana didn't cross to capture the other girl's lips. She waited, as she always does when it comes to Jihyo. Yes, it may be because she wants to prove how patient she is, but actually there's a deeper reason. 

Her patience with Jihyo will always be plenty, however she can’t deny no longer that her confidence is wearing thin. She had always tried her best to hide how nervous she actually is when she initiates their interactions. She knows liking Jihyo and the possibility of having her feelings reciprocated is too good to be true. At some point she knows she will get rejected. Maybe Jihyo's simply a really nice human being who never says no to her, afraid that her feelings might get hurt, and for that she'll be eternally grateful. But at this moment she doesn't want Jihyo to be nice. This time Sana waits because she needs something to keep her grounded and tell her that she is indeed waiting for something. 

She needs to know that Jihyo, even the tiniest part of her, wants her too. 

So she waits for however painfully long it is.

Thankfully, a soft pair of lips touches hers.

\--

The kiss is tentative, nothing more than a simple press of lips against hers, together with a tender caress of fingers on her cheeks and it's just so _Sana_ \- warm and perfect. 

The Japanese breaks it off first, and she doesn't know what came into her when she blindly chased the other girl's lips. She almost didn't want to open her eyes, afraid of getting teased with her embarrassing reaction, but she can't really keep her eyes closed forever can she? The sight that welcomes her is a lazy, satisfied grin on Sana's face. 

No one dared to speak up, but the older reaches out and uses the pad of her thumb to wipe Jihyo's lips and clean the invisible mess that she had created, and it just adds to the warmth that had already settled in her heart, because even this time Sana is taking care of her. 

She felt Sana take her hand, and saw her guide it to her chest, to that certain space directly above her heart. "I don't know what kind of answer you want from me." She felt Sana's hard, rapid, stuttering heart that closely mimics hers. "But you do this to me."

Something between them shifts, and Jihyo allows herself to drown.

\--

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really having a hard time writing fluff, but I hope you like this.
> 
> Thank you again for the comments. I really appreciate them! :)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a mess. Sorry in advance. :)

Jeongyeon and Momo requested for the five of them to meet up a week after, something about a big announcement they said. 

Jihyo arrived early, and this time it was Sana who’s late. The Japanese texted to give them a heads up, and told her that they should start eating without her. The three older girls did as they were told except her. She wanted to wait for Sana, it's just not the same without the other girl, not when they've spent almost the whole week together. 

Their three other friends were just about to finish when Sana arrived. Jihyo's not sure if she's just imagining it, but there's just something about their dynamics that changed after they.. _you know_. Jihyo tries her best not to think about it and does her best to make it seem like it's not a big deal, but Sana might have been thinking the exact opposite. 

The moment the Japanese girl comes in and invades her personal space, a hand instinctively comes up on her waist pulling her closer and warm soft lips touch her cheeks. "I missed you baby girl."

The reaction is almost instant. She first sees Nayeon almost falling off her chair with how fast she whipped her head to confirm if what she just heard was true. It was a miracle she was able to get a grip on the table or else she would literally be stumbling down. She can’t really say anything much about Jeongyeon except it definitely was not a pretty sight as she watched the liquid Jeongyeon was drinking flow out of her nose. She doesn't know if she should be disgusted or concerned. Good thing Momo is there to wipe her girlfriend’s face (Yes they’re official now, hence the meet up. Jihyo cannot believe it was Momo who asked Jeongyeon, now she needs to pay Nayeon). 

She looks at the fiasco happening right before her eyes and decides not to mind them. She instead looks back to the person standing right in front of her and ponders on why her knees are feeling jelly. She remembers hearing that overused term of endearment before and she always almost barfs when she hears other people say it. But the words roll perfectly out of Sana's lips and it does wonders inside her.

It took a few moments for all of them to eventually calm down. She still feels the two pairs of eyes boring holes through her skull, but she ignores them, focusing instead on the person beside her. The look on Sana’s face when she learned that Jihyo waited for her was priceless, almost as if she’s on the brink of breaking down. Jihyo thought it was so adorable. At this point, she really doesn't want to deny anymore that she is attracted to the Japanese.

\--

As they walk home together, holding each other's hands like what they've been doing since forever, Jihyo can't help but to remember what happened a while back.

"Really? Baby girl?"

She hears a snicker from the Japanese.

"Well.. you're a girl."

Jihyo looks at Sana, unamused.

"Do you not like it?"

"I didn't say that."

She knows she's blushing again with the way she feels her face warming up. She expected some teasing coming from the girl beside her but she heard none. 

"I know I may get a little too much sometimes." The conversation steered into something more serious than what Jihyo intended. "But you know you can always tell me if you're getting uncomfortable, right? Tell me if I need to stop?"

She ends their silly banter with a squeeze of Sana's hand and a knowing smile. Their walk home was pretty quiet after that, which didn't sit right with the Japanese as she can still sense the uncomfortable tension between them. A few more minutes of silence pass until Sana breaks it. 

"Penny for your thoughts?"

Jihyo hesitates on telling Sana what's going on inside her head. In all honesty, Jihyo's still scared of many things, especially if it involves Sana. But their friendship, or whatever this is that they’re doing, is not built on dishonesty. 

"It's scary how happy you make me."

She feels a gentle tug on her hand as Sana forces them to stop on their tracks. She looks at the other girl and sees a little bit of hesitation in her eyes, unlike the many times that Sana has surprised her with her sudden burst of affection. She sees a hand hovering above her chest and she stands still hoping that it will tell the other girl that it's okay, she trusts her. Sana gently places her hand on Jihyo's chest mirroring the way she did with hers the other day. It was a few seconds more before words came out her mouth, clearly contemplating on what to say. Brown eyes stare directly at her.

"I'll do my best not to break _it_."

Jihyo believes her.

\--

The fallout comes in the form of a phone call.

After days of living in a happy bubble she created with Sana, her mother calls her out of the blue, something that always told her there's something wrong.

"Your father and I are getting a divorce."

  
  


The illusion breaks. 

Warning sirens in her ears.

Nothing good comes with drowning.

\--

When people talk about love, it usually almost always relates to our heart, hard not to when all the sensation of it pounding and then suddenly slowing down when we see someone we like is all we can feel when we do have someone we adore very much. However, our heart barely has anything to do with it, and our brain is actually the one to blame. 

Nerve receptors present in our body detect sensory stimuli that are eventually sent to our brain. These stimuli may be in the form of seeing soft brown eyes, hearing those adorable giggles or even feeling the warm hands around yours. (Even thinking about these makes Jihyo lose her mind.) What our brain does is to reciprocate these stimuli with emotions as well as matching physical responses to these emotions, thus the rapid beating of our heart and all other sensations that we feel when we're around the object of our affections.

In Jihyo’s mind it works this way. Emotions and feelings, all these sensations that she’s experiencing at the moment, it’s all a scam. This is just her brain's way of _tricking_ her that she is capable of feeling “love". 

And if this is how it works, she has a plan that would help her from stopping all this.

Avoid the person giving her brain these stimuli. Cut them all off directly from its source.

\--

The first glimpse of Sana makes her want to just turn around and run away. But she doesn’t. This is the only logical thing to do, she convinces herself.

As soon as she faces the other girl, she stills and puts on a strong front.

“Let’s not walk home together.”

There’s concern etched in Sana’s face as she slowly gets closer to Jihyo.

“Busy day today?”

Jihyo just looks away. “I mean everyday.”

“Hey. Tell me what's wrong.” Sana reaches out to Jihyo’s arms, attempting to offer the younger girl comfort. Jihyo flinches, and the concern on Sana’s face immediately changes to one of being hurt.

Still avoiding Sana’s gaze, Jihyo meekly says, trying to maybe soften the blow. 

“Whatever it is that we’re doing, I want it to stop.”

Even if it pains her, the ever so patient Sana still tries to get something out of the Korean girl. 

“You won’t even tell me what’s wrong?”

Jihyo really wants to just finish this conversation. She knows that if this keeps up, there's a huge chance she’ll cave in and just take back everything that she just said. And for the first time Jihyo chooses not to tell Sana what’s really wrong. With a resigned sigh she plainly tells her

“You told me, Sana.”

There was a brief moment of silence until Jihyo inevitably looks up to check on the other girl’s reaction, and she immediately regrets her decision because she sees Sana holding back her tears, pain and confusion evident in her face as she forces herself to look like she’s fine with what Jihyo asks of her. Sana answers back, and her voice almost cracks. Even with her best effort to mask the hurt in her voice, Jihyo still catches it.

“Well, that’s _fair_. I guess.”

No other words were exchanged between them as the Japanese girl turned her back on her and left without looking back.

\--

Jihyo tries to rationalize her decision that night. She lists out all the things that will justify that what she did was right.

_First_

These are just her hormones talking, a huge amount of a combination of dopamine and oxytocin that her brain decided to release every time she’s with Sana, which led her to believe that she so badly wants to be around her. 

_Second_

The other girl is bound to leave anyway. After a few months of being ‘what they were’ before this, they will eventually stop along the way. Isn’t it better to just end it now when things are still aren’t that deep?

_Third_

She thinks about the experiment they did a few months back, and it rests her case. Everything that they are experiencing right now is all because of that stupid experiement. Their main goal when they first started is for them to prove it wrong, but somewhere along the way, Jihyo doesn’t know where or when, she decides to f*ck things up and forget what she was supposed to do. Why would she risk so much for some engineered emotion? 

She looks at the clock and sighs. She only got 3 hours more before she needed to get up and prepare for school. It sucks that she can’t sleep again because of Sana, it sucks even more that the images she had before of deep brown eyes and sickly sweet smiles are now replaced with red rimmed eyes full of unshed tears. She knows that the constricting pain that she feels in her heart is again just her brain trying to match her emotions, and she does her best not to mind it. But however many times she convinces herself that she’ll get over it, doesn’t make the pain she’s feeling any less lighter.

\--

She wakes up the next weekend with a blaring phone call. She sees Jeong’s id from her screen and takes the call.

“What did you do Park Jihyo?”

“Good morning to you too, Yoo Jeongyeon.” She takes a peek at the time and it reads 6:12 am. “Thanks for waking me up at this ungodly hour. Rude.”

“You didn’t answer my question.”

Jihyo scoffs. It’s too early for her to have this conversation. “I don’t even know what you’re talking about.”

“I’m talking about Sa-”

“Jeong. Not now.” Jihyo cuts her off immediately. She’s clearly not yet ready to talk about _her_ this early in the morning, or maybe ever. “I need to visit home, issues to resolve. My family needs me. Talk to you when I get back?”

Jeongyeon stays mum on the other line. When the opportunity presented itself for Jihyo to be able to live away from her parent’s house, she instantly took it without any hesitation. Since then, Jihyo barely visits home. Even during holidays, she’d rather spend most of her time in her apartment and only comes home on special occasions. Knowing this, Jeongyeon understands that whatever reason it is, for Jihyo to suddenly visit home, it must be serious. “Take care of yourself Hyo. We’re here if you need us.”

\--

As soon as she steps inside her parent's house, a gloomy feeling envelopes her. It has been a long time since she has given up on considering the place a home. Even when she lived together with them, it hasn't felt like it in quite a while.

"Mom?" She calls out to let her presence be known, and she hears a voice coming from the kitchen.

Her mom's smiling face that greets her takes her off guard. It seemed weird to her at first until she realized that there's really no reason for her parents splitting up to be a sad occasion. Her mom might've felt free now, and for that she's glad. 

"Where's the other two?" Jihyo looks for her two younger sisters. Deep inside, she's feeling more guilty for leaving them behind when she chose to live separately, away from all the drama.

Her mother places two cups of warm tea on the table and gestures for her to sit down. "They're probably just playing with friends. They'll be back before dinner, don't worry." Her mom looks at her for a while and carefully inquires. "You'll be staying for dinner right?"

She nods. It's probably the least she can do. A wider smile decorates her mom's lips and it's enough to make the itch of getting out disappear.

"How are you?" She tentatively asks. She doesn't know why she even bothered when she knows it won't help lighten the situation. 

A hand comes up on her back and soothes her. Her mom offers her a genuine smile. "We're fine." 

Jihyo doesn't know if she's really here to offer her mom comfort because it just seems the other way around. Ever since their family started having problems, not once did Jihyo open up about her feelings to anyone. But of course her parents must have always probably known. 

"I'm sorry, baby."

"Mom. You don't have to. Please. It's no one's fault, really."

Her mom clears her throat before speaking again. "I know, but still. I'm sorry for putting all of you through it."

Jihyo takes a sip of her now lukewarm tea and it relieves some of the tension she doesn't know she's holding. 

"Did you regret it?"

There’s a deep breath that both of them lets out, and it makes them smile. Her mom realizes that Jihyo has grown up. This is a conversation that both of them deserve and needed.

“There’s a lot of things that I regret doing, but loving your father was not one of them.”

“Even after all the sh*t storm that you went through?” Jihyo’s eyes widen at the realization that she is not just talking with her same aged friends. “Pardon my language.”

Her mom can’t help but to laugh, not minding the slightly crude language. “Yes baby, even after all that.”

There’s still something not clicking in Jihyo’s mind. She simply cannot think of any possible reason that will make a sane person willingly go through all that mess, especially when you already know you’ll end up with a not so happy ending.

“I want you to understand that most of the time, there’s nothing logical with falling in love." A hand comes up to hers, which she readily takes. "When I was happy with your dad, I was the happiest. And I really hope that whatever happened between us won’t stop you from letting yourself be with someone.”

Jihyo smiles at that. Crazy how the whole time they’re having this conversation, there's one single person that occupies her mind. She realizes how real her feelings might’ve been, still are. Maybe the reason why she’s so afraid of letting herself fall is because she already did.

She squeezes her mother's hand, thankful for making her understand things a little better.

Jihyo hopes she hasn't ruined everything, yet.

\--

"Ready?”

Nayeon snaps her out of her deep thoughts. They were sitting across each other in the same secluded room that she was in a few months ago. This is the first day that Jihyo got back from her trip home after staying there for a couple of days. She almost forgot about the final interview that they need to do for their final project. Yes, the infamous experiment that Jihyo wasn’t sure if she despises or not. If it wasn’t for Nayeon’s incessant calling, she would’ve stayed a bit longer with her family.

Jihyo nods her head. With a camera in hand, Nayeon presses the record button and starts the interview right off the bat.

“This will be real quick, Hyo. It all comes down to a single question that you just need to answer truthfully.”

Jihyo stares at Nayeon, her nerves a bit all over the place as she anticipates what Nayeon will ask.

“Do you love her?”

Unable to hide her surprise with the straightforward question, Jihyo answers Nayeon with a humourless laugh. Does Nayeon think it’d be that easy to answer such a type of inquiry? But Nayeon probably already knows that as Jihyo notices the encouraging look her best friend gives her.

“It shouldn’t be that hard to answer if you already accepted what you feel, Hyo. I just want to remind you that a result opposite to what we predicted will always be valid.” 

Jihyo lets out a sigh. Why does it feel like Nayeon already expects an answer from her, without her even saying anything? She looks at Nayeon, still unable to respond. She offers a question instead.

“How do you do it?” 

Nayeon’s eyebrows rise. She presses the pause button and lowers the camera. This is probably a conversation between friends, something private that would be better if not shared with others. Jihyo clears out her previous question.

“You know, fall too easily?”

Her best friend smiles at that. Takes a few seconds before responding.

“I guess I just like the intensity of varying emotions that I feel that comes with it. It makes me feel more human.” Nayeon looks at her and asks. “Do you get me?” 

Weirdly enough, Jihyo does. But there are still a thousand confusing thoughts running through her head.

“Even if you know you won't end up together?" 

"Doesn't it add to the beauty of being in love? The uncertainty - the thrill of not knowing but still wanting to be together?”

Jihyo keeps her mouth shut.

“Don’t you think it’s amazing how finding someone who’ll make you _feel_ things is most of the time up to chance? How it always starts so randomly, it both scares and excites you. It will make you believe in destiny, only to realise that it actually takes courage and effort to be with someone.”

There’s a comfortable silence that surrounds the room, with Jihyo just taking in all what Nayeon is telling her.

“Jeong and I have read and researched almost all known cases that did the same experiment that we made you do. We just didn’t share that information to you at the start to lessen the case of you being biased, but I want to tell you now the common conclusion that they all came up with.”

It piqued Jihyo’s attention.

“The experiment is heavily influenced by your willingness. It will only work if you allow yourself to fall.” Nayeon fixes her posture, readies her camera and presses play again.

“So let me ask you again Ms. Park Jihyo…

  
  


Do you love her?” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter is the last!
> 
> Again, thank you for all the comments.  
> I really do appreciate them.
> 
> Tell me what you think? :)


	5. Chapter 5

_And if you were to ask me_  
_After all that we've been through_  
_Still believe in magic?_  
_Well yes, I do_

_-Magic, Coldplay_

Jihyo runs. She runs and runs until she feels the familiar burn in her lungs and sore in her legs. She doesn't really know if she’s headed to the right direction, or if she even needs to run, but she does, because she cannot stand any second more not seeing the single person occupying her whole mind the entire time. 

She huffs when she finally arrives in front of Momo’s apartment. She knocks with her heart threatening to jump out of her chest, and when the door finally opens she almost faints. Good thing the face that greeted her was Jeongyeon’s.

Jihyo only took three deep breaths before she spoke with urgency. “Is Sana here?”

Jeongyeon laughs at her. “Calm down Ji. Why don’t you come inside for awhile just so you can catch your breath.”

She takes a peek inside and sees that the person she’s looking for is not in sight. But she obliges with Jeongyeon’s suggestion. She probably has time to drink a glass of water or two. It’s not like Sana’s going anywhere, is she?

The second she steps inside the apartment, her eyes connect with Momo. There was a shiver down her spine that she never thought she'd feel given that it’s Momo - Momo who’s unable to even kill a teeny tiny insect, Momo with the dopiest smile Jihyo thinks she’s a literal baby. She's just thankful Jeongyeon was there in between them or else she’s not too sure what would have gone down between them by now.

“She’s been like that since, you know.” Jeongyeon gestures to her, and Jihyo understands at instant. Momo stands up and enters her room without sparing them another glance. The two took this chance to walk over to the living room and rest on the couch for a while.

It only took her a few seconds more before she finally asked about the other Japanese’s whereabouts. And as soon as Jeongyeon tells her “she has an appointment with the dean” Jihyo almost stands up and runs at an instant. But before she can even do that, Momo emerges out of her room and gives them a look. “Can we talk?” There was still that chilling gaze in Momo's eyes that Jihyo probably won't be able to erase from her mind, but the other girl’s voice was calm. She takes this as a good sign. 

Jeongyeon gives her a pat on the back before going straight to Momo. There was a look that the both of them shared before Momo gave Jeongyeon a kiss on her cheek and a promise of “I’ll be nice.”

It’s all it takes to reassure Jeongyeon and make her leave and stay inside the bedroom instead. She doesn’t need to be told that this conversation is something private between her girlfriend and her best friend. “Be here if you need me.” She reminds the both of them before closing the door completely.

Jihyo had a real difficult time looking straight at Momo when the other girl decided to sit beside her. There was a respectable distance between them, and Jihyo remains quiet. She’d known Momo for quite a while now, and has always been a constant presence ever since Jeongyeon met her in one of their minor classes a few semesters ago. But saying that she _knows_ the other girl would be too much of an overstatement. Maybe that’s why being in this situation is a bit unnerving for her, never really knowing what will happen. But she knows Jeongyeon, have always known Jeongyeon for almost all her life, and she knows her best friend wouldn’t have fallen for someone less than perfect.

“Sana wears her heart on her sleeves.” Momo starts quietly. “People sometimes think she’s too much of a flirt, but she’s just naturally affectionate..” Momo looks at her this time. “..you should know.” Jihyo simply nods.

“I don’t know what happened between you two, but this is the first time I saw her broken like that.” Momo figured there’s no point in lying or even trying to beat around the bush. “I heard Jeong already told you where she is.” Jihyo doesn’t know why she’s still having a hard time speaking out words, but she does and the only thing she can do is to give a hum of agreement so that she won’t look rude.

Momo locks her eyes on hers, and there’s that shiver again on her spine as she waits for the other girl to speak. “Whatever it is that you want to tell her, just please, and I cannot stress this enough, please be sure with your feelings first.”

Jihyo lets out the breath she’s been holding and it makes the atmosphere inside the room a bit more comfortable for the both of them. She gives Momo a tight lipped but genuine smile that the older one returns “I will.. I am now.” And it feels like the load inside Jihyo lightens a little.

“I may not look much like it, but if you hurt her I will make your life a living hell.” If it was a few weeks ago, Jihyo would most likely just laugh at that, but after having this conversation with Momo she’s a hundred percent sure that the threat is not to be taken too lightly. Jihyo sees Momo stare intently at the closed door where her girlfriend is. “I know you’d do the same if I hurt Jeongie, which I’m doing my best not to.” Jihyo continues to observe until she sees the small smile form in Momo’s lips - a smile that stems from the assurance that behind that closed door, the person she loves very much will always be eagerly waiting for her. 

The itch to run returns and this time no one stops her. She stands up and heads to the door. Jihyo realizes how alike she and Momo are. She looks back to the other girl, and Momo gives her a nod. It encourages her. Maybe it is true that it gets worse before it gets better. Jihyo sure does hope it does get better. 

\--

She takes a lungful of air as soon as she sees a glimpse of the girl she’s been looking for. She’s having a hard time breathing with all the running, but no matter how quickly she wanted to see the other girl, the moment she laid her eyes on Sana made Jihyo hesitate to even come close. Would Sana even spare her a minute after what she’s done? But she’s here, just a few strides away from the other girl. She can’t be a coward now, not when her being afraid of her feelings was what put them in this situation in the first place. 

A single step and Sana immediately senses her presence and looks at her direction. As she bravely takes a step to close the distance between them, Jihyo expected the same angelic smile and soft gaze that Sana had always reserved for her. But she saw none of it. She was just welcomed by a sight of a girl too afraid to even look at her - pain still evident in her eyes and Jihyo just wanted to cry. Because Sana is the sun, warm and bright. And she had hurt her - had managed to dim the luster the girl had always carried. Because Sana is the only good thing she had in her life in quite a while, maybe the only good thing she’ll ever have, and she managed to mess it up. But Sana never moves away from her, proves just how pure the other girl is, and Jihyo cannot believe that she had hurt her. 

“C-can we talk?” She had always been teased for her abnormally loud voice, but this time Jihyo swears the other might have not even heard her with how tiny her voice came out. 

A woman comes out of the door beside them and gestures for Sana to come in. The Japanese evidently takes a few while to decide whether to go ahead inside or to give in to Jihyo’s request. She walks toward the dean’s secretary and whispers something Jihyo cannot hear. As soon as the two finished conversing, Sana turned around to look at her. “5 minutes.”

\--

Jihyo takes them to a secluded area - the empty music room just above the dean’s office. Sana takes her place in the middle of the room, where the piano is. With her arms crossed in front of her, she rests her body on the instrument’s huge frame and waits for what Jihyo has to say. 

In all honesty, Jihyo really doesn't know what to say, how to even start the conversation. But they’re only given 5 minutes, time that she doesn’t even deserve. So she tries. “What’s your deal going to the dean’s office?” And really, Jihyo could’ve done better, could’ve said more important words other than that.

Sana scoffs at the question. “You’re giving me whiplash here Jihyo, one moment we’re okay, next day you don’t want anything to do with me, and now you want to make small talk?” Frustration can be heard in Sana’s tone, but never did she raise her voice. She avoids Jihyo’s eyes as she tells her the reason. “I’m withdrawing my application for the next school year.” 

Jihyo whips her head instantly to look at Sana, finding it hard to believe what she’s hearing ‘She had plans to stay?’

“They advised me that I could, and I applied a few weeks before, but I don’t think I want that anymore.” Jihyo waits until Sana looks at her directly, barely - as if it physically pains to even see a glimpse of her. “I don’t think I’ll be okay seeing you all the time.”

It felt a lot like being punched in the gut. Jihyo feels dizzy, having a hard time hearing what the other girl has to say. Sana attempts to maintain her calm demeanor until she cannot hold it anymore.

“I promised not to break your heart, but right now you’re breaking mine.”

Sana quickly wipes away the stray tear that she wasn’t able to hold in. “If you’re here to apologise, you didn’t need to. It’s not your fault that I expected too much.” The Japanese stands up properly and heads to the door. She looks at Jihyo like it’s the last time, unable to keep how bitter she is with how sh*tty the situation made her feel. “It was just a stupid experiment. _I_ was just an experiment.”

  
  


Before Sana can totally exit the room Jihyo reaches out for her, preventing her from doing so. Jihyo's hold on Sana’s hand was firm, enough to make the older one look at her. Just like the numerous times that Sana had left her speechless, Jihyo again wasn’t able to speak. And when words are not an option, Jihyo figures it’s time to resort to actions.

Jihyo kisses her. And she knows it’s desperate, but she doesn’t care. All those pent up emotions now finally catching up to her. 

She kisses her and it hurts - hurts how Sana’s lips remained frigid against hers. It hurts ‘cause maybe she had already lost Sana. She breaks what you can hardly even call a kiss, and can’t even look at the girl in front of her, can’t even fathom the pain she’s feeling, but still she tries. “Please stay.”

It takes a lot of courage but Jihyo looks straight at Sana’s eyes this time, and it’s full of conflicting emotions that she can't decipher. It adds up inside her mind that's already full of jumbled past conversations. 

  
  


_‘There’s nothing logical with falling in love.’_

  
  


_‘Please make sure of your feelings first.’_

  
  


_‘You do this to me.’_

  
  
  


_‘Do you love her?’_

  
  


It’s too much for her to take in, too much that she can’t hold it in any longer. “I’m in love with you, so please stay.”

Jihyo waits a few minutes more with both of them unmoving. She realizes how selfish and undeserving she really is of the girl in front of her and realizes that Sana must’ve thought so too. After a little while she loosens her grip on Sana’s hands.

She’s just about to give up when she feels the hand she’s about to let go, chase after hers. A tiny spark of hope ignites in hers, and she bravely attempts again. She allows herself to just stop thinking for once, and to just follow what she’s feeling. She slowly closes the distance between them and tentatively kisses Sana again. Her heart blooms with joy this time as Sana finally meets her kiss for kiss. 

It never escalated to anything more than an innocent brush of lips against each other, and after what feels like forever, they break apart to catch their breaths. Jihyo feels a hand travel to her cheeks to wipe away the tears she didn't know were there. "Say that again."

Jihyo's voice shakes as she replies. She tells Sana the one thing she was too afraid to admit, even to herself. The answer to Nayeon’s question from earlier which she still left hanging as she wanted Sana to be the first one to know, to hear. She whispers it to the other girl’s lips - a confession meant only for the both of them. “I love you.”

There was a quiet satisfied hum that Sana lets out, but before she could even start to speak, Jihyo beats her to it. “I’m sorry for hurting you, and I’m sorry for being a coward.” 

Sana’s hand never left her face, and she continues to brush her thumb on her cheeks as Jihyo continues to speak. “There will be times when I’d still get scared...” She's still staring back at Sana’s eyes - those same brown orbs that had managed to suck her in and make her fall. “..but I promise to always, _always_ be honest with you.” 

Slowly, a sight of blinding smile and the same giggles that she had always adored returns. It takes her back to that time when they both met each other, the first time she felt like wanting the time to stop. Jihyo can't explain just how happy she is that _her Sana's_ back. 

“Good. ‘Cause I love you too. In case it wasn’t clear enough.” 

It's Sana who kisses her this time, and it’s nothing less than perfect. Same with the infinite kisses that they will continue to share on days to come.

\--

Sana’s talk with the dean came out smoothly as she managed to charm her way into convincing the old man that she was there just to thank him for the opportunity that he gave her, which is the total 180 from what she was supposed to say a few minutes ago. 

They walk home hand in hand together this time, and Jihyo feels like she would never want to let go. She still feels guilty though and she promised Sana she’d be honest with her. 

“I went home over the weekend. My parents are getting divorced.” It catches Sana’s attention, but never speaks and just lets Jihyo talk. “I was too afraid of falling too hard for you, and ending up getting hurt. I thought you’re bound to leave me soon, too.”

“What made you change your mind then?”

“I was pretty okay before I met you, and I realized that I don’t want that. I don’t want to feel _just okay_."

Jihyo remembers the first time she dreamt about Sana. It was the dream she had with the ocean. She may have never really seen the other girl's face in the images inside her head during those nights, but she just knows it's about Sana. And all of it didn't really make sense before, until now.

"I want what you make me feel - all good and bad.”

As they reach her apartment, Jihyo asks for Sana to stay. 

Sana never really learned how to say no to her, did she.

\--

At the end of the semester, Jeongyeon’s prediction really did come true. The three of them got the highest grades in their class. The result that they presented was definitely the opposite of what they initially wanted to happen, but it’s better. 

So much better when Jihyo invited her now girlfriend for show and tell. The blush from her face and the smug smirk from Sana’s made the whole class squeal from excitement. 

\--

Jihyo now sleeps more peacefully. Is it because of the presence of her person beside her keeping her warm, with arms open wide for her to use as a makeshift pillow? Maybe. 

She shifts gently, careful not to disturb Sana who she thought is already deep asleep. But the Japanese slowly faces her fully, can sense that her girlfriend's still awake. Sana remains quiet though and keeps her eyes closed, only tightens her embrace on Jihyo's small frame. Ever since that day at the dean's office Sana never really had to ask Jihyo what's going inside her head, instead she just waits for Jihyo until she's ready to tell her things. 

"Did you stay just because of me?" The question has always lingered on Jihyo's mind, and it has always bothered her. 

"Yes and no." Sana answers her with her eyes still closed. "The program is really good, it's a great opportunity for me that's why I decided to stay." Sana slowly opens her eyes this time. "But I fell in love with you, which made me want to stay here even more."

Sana soothes Jihyo's back as she decides to be painfully honest with her girlfriend. They now both know that being honest, even if it hurts, would always be better than hiding what you truly feel. 

"But when I promised you that you can tell me to stop, which you did, I knew I'd have a hard time staying away and keeping my promise. And honestly, what you did kinda sting."

"Sorry." Jihyo pouts and Sana just falls a little deeper.

"It's okay now. I understand why you did that."

"I'm just scared you'll realize I'm not worth the trouble of being away from your family. You might resent me too much, and I don't want that." 

Sana chuckles quietly. "You worry too much, you know that?" Jihyo just nods, sees no point in denying it. "I did this for me Jihyo, having you is just a bonus I guess."

Sana straightens the knot on Jihyo's brows. "And you'll always be worth it baby." 

Jihyo blushes at that, still can't seem to get used to how Sana treats her. So Jihyo distracts herself by tracing her girlfriend's features using the pad of her thumb. Sana just smiles at her as she jokingly complains that "it kinda tickles."

"Don't you miss your home?"

"Why would I?" Sana just snuggles into her a little closer. "I am home."

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


(Epilogue)

As soon as Jihyo spots her friends on their usual table in the cafeteria, she approaches them immediately. She automatically gives Sana a peck on her cheeks, which she had never imagined herself doing, especially in public. But it made Sana happy every time she did that, so she eventually managed to learn to show her affections more until it became natural for her.

The giggles that she hears from her girlfriend makes her giddy, and it’s probably the exact opposite of what Nayeon is feeling as Jihyo sees the older girl give all of them the biggest eye roll. 

“Ugh. I’ve been enduring having to listen to Jeongyeon and Momo list the snacks they're going to buy their baby Boo after class..” Nayeon points to her and Sana. “..and you two just had to be that extremely affectionate in public. All of you really just enjoy rubbing it to my face, don't you?”

They can’t help but to laugh at that. They never meant to make Nayeon feel that way, but seeing the oldest girl throw a tantrum is just pure comedy.

Momo finally speaks up to break the laughing fit. She addresses Sana, “Maybe we should ask Mitang to come over too so that Nayeon unnie won’t feel too lonely.” 

They notice the immediate blush that extends from Nayeon's neck up to her cheeks. Jeongyeon can’t help but to snort. “You have got to be kidding me.”

Nayeon gives her a threatening look. “What?!”

“You just heard a name and you’re already starting to fall in love!”

Soon enough, all of them start cracking up again while Nayeon timidly looks down - a bit ashamed of her uncontrolled reactions. “But the name Mitang sounds cute though.”

Sana answers this time. "Don't worry Nayeon unnie, her name's not the only thing that's cute, and I'll make sure to call her later." 

If it's even possible, they're sure the color on Nayeon's face just got a little bit deeper.

Jihyo feels Sana lean her head on her shoulder and reach out for her hand to hold under the table. She looks at her Sana and finds that the other girl also staring directly at her.

"Maybe she'll find a home here too, like I did."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for being sh*t at updating.  
> Still hope you made it till the end. lol
> 
> twt and cc @/veinhirai  
> let's be friends! :D
> 
> Thank you for reading this and again thank you for all the comments <3
> 
> See you in the next one :)


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